The Church of St Hilary is an
Early English–style church in the village of
St Hilary, Cornwall,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. It features a 13th-century tower. Following a fire in 1853, the remainder of the church was rebuilt two years later by
William White. The church is dedicated to
Saint Hilary of Poitiers and is a Grade I
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. The architecture is described in
Pevsner's ''Buildings of England: Cornwall''.
Antiquities
A Roman milestone was found in the foundations of the church in 1854, and it is now fixed in the south aisle. The inscription, ''Imp Caes Flav Val Constantino Pio nob Caes divi Constanti Pii F
lAug
stifilio'', refers to the Roman emperor
Constantine the Great
Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...
(Collingwood (1965) RIB no. 2233). The churchyard contains both
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
and
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
crosses.
There is a Cornish cross in the churchyard; it has a Latin cross on both sides. There is another cross on Trewhela Lane.
20th century and after
Newlyn School artists' works
Bernard "Ber" Walke was made Vicar of St Hilary in 1912; he was the priest from 1913 to 1936.
[''Anne Walke''.]
Penlee House Museum and Gallery. Retrieved 1 October 2012.[Claughton Pellew; Anne Stevens; Ashmolean Museum. ]
Claughton Pellew: wood engravings : Ashmolean Museum, Eldon Gallery, 16 September-22 November 1987
'. Ashmolean Museum; September 1987. p. 14. Although the medieval St Hilary Church was rebuilt in 1853, it lacked interior decoration.
["Reverend_Bernard_Walke]
_and_His_Mother.".html" ;"title="Bernard Walke">"Reverend Bernard Walke
and His Mother."">Bernard Walke">"Reverend Bernard Walke
and His Mother."''BBC.'' Your Paintings. Retrieved 2 October 2012. Annie Walke, the vicar's wife, and some of the couple's artist friends from the "Lamorna Group" of the
Newlyn School
The Newlyn School was an art colony of artists based in or near Newlyn, a fishing village adjacent to Penzance, on the south coast of Cornwall, from the 1880s until the early twentieth century. The establishment of the Newlyn School was reminis ...
were commissioned to decorate the church with altarpieces, panels and other works.
[ Some of the works depicted the lives of saints from Cornwall.][
One of Annie's works for the church was a ]Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...
painting that was placed just inside the south door of the church. Ernest Procter made a work that depicts St Mawes, St Kevin
Saint Kevin (modern Irish '; Old Irish ', '; latinized '; 498 (reputedly)–3 June 618) is an Irish saint, known as the founder and first abbot of Glendalough in County Wicklow, Ireland. His feast day is 3 June.
Early life
Kevin's life is not ...
and St Neot for the pulpit and a reredos of the Altar
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...
of the Dead. Annie, Dod and Ernest Procter, Gladys Hynes, Alethea and Norman Garstin
Norman Garstin (28 August 1847 – 22 June 1926) was an Irish artist, teacher, art critic and journalist associated with the Newlyn School of painters. After completing his studies in Antwerp and Paris, Garstin travelled around Europe and pa ...
and Harold Knight
Harold Knight (27 January 1874 – 3 October 1961) was an English portrait, genre and landscape painter.
Knight was born in Nottingham, England, the son of William Knight, architect, and studied at Nottingham School of Art under Wilson Foste ...
all made paintings for the sides of the stalls in the church. Phyllis ("Pog") Yglesias made the north wall's crucifix and nearby is Roger Fry's reredos. 12-year-old Joan Manning Saunders made the painted pictures for a chancel screen.
Damage and restoration
The parish became notorious in the 1930s after extreme Protestant agitators broke into the church on 8 August 1932, and removed or destroyed many of the fittings and furnishings that had been installed by the much-loved Father Bernard Walke (vicar of St. Hilary from 1912 to 1936). The damage was caused by an ad hoc group of Protestants from Plymouth and elsewhere. More recently, some of these have been restored, and the devotional Anglo-Catholic atmosphere has been reinstated.
The church continues to fundraise to maintain the fabric and is hoping to be able to restore the bells which are currently awaiting repair.
St Hilary Heritage Centre
The church houses the St Hilary Heritage Centre beneath the school room, with displays about local history dating back to the Roman era. Exhibits include mining, emigration, Newlyn School
The Newlyn School was an art colony of artists based in or near Newlyn, a fishing village adjacent to Penzance, on the south coast of Cornwall, from the 1880s until the early twentieth century. The establishment of the Newlyn School was reminis ...
paintings, Cornish language and the history of the church.
References
External links
St. Hilary Church
- official site
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Hilary
St Hilary
Grade I listed churches in Cornwall
Local museums in Cornwall
St Hilary